The Wagga refugee advocate has called Australia home since 2006 but he said family and former colleagues in his birth-country were still fighting to survive. 

Fairfax Media reported more than a-quarter-of-a-million children were severely malnourished and at risk of dying as a result of the country’s condition. 

Mr Moi is urging Riverina residents to give generously to the charity bodies and organisations currently helping to provide clean drinking water and other forms of aid.

According to the United Nations’ definition of famine, one in five households must face extreme food shortage, more than 30 per cent of the population must be acutely malnourished with at least two people in every 10,000 dying each day.

“It brings a lot of discomfort to know people are suffering,” Mr Moi said. 

“Of course the discomfort is greater if your own relatives and people that you know are going through it – that’s the worst part.”

Mr Moi said starvation was even a risk in the cities as those he knew were going to market and finding nothing to buy. 

He said there three factors influenced the famine.

“The major one is the war,” Mr Moi said. “To-date that war has caused a lot of havoc and many people have been killed, displaced and forced into exile in neighbouring countries.”

He said the people he knew now lived in a “survival of the fittest” world.

“Those who can, cut there way through it,” Mr Moi said. 

“But the majority of people are just rendered helpless.”

Mr Moi said farmers were unable to cultivate due to a disastrous lack of rain and an inability for many to leave the country was also contributing to the now-dire situation.

“What we need right now is for the war to stop,” he said.

“The rest of the things will come to play.”